Treasure Hunt
by StellarDust2K
Summary: The Tinker Bell gang flies all over Neverland in search of pirate treasure.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

Author's Note: Here's my lucky 13th TBell story. In the books, Fawn is described as a trickster and a practical joker. We see none of that in the movies, so I thought I'd give Fawn a chance at it.

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* * *

 **Treasure Hunt** \- Chapter 1 - The Bait

Tinker Bell buzzed through the cool dawn air, following the Pixie Hollow road to the border. She flew over the road end turn-about, continued over the border and into the Neverwood. There she slowed, gliding as she studied the trees.

Pixie Hollow tinkers are heavy consumers of twigs & sticks. They're used for struts & braces, push-rods, pull-rods, levers & pry-bars, and also wagon axles. The supply of quality twigs from inside Pixie Hollow was getting low, so Tink decided someone needed to find a new source until the local twigs grew back.

Tinker Bell spent a short while exploring the Neverwood, noting where the best sticks were. It was about time to turn back for breakfast, but Tink thought " _While I'm out here, I might as well check the cove._ " So she flew south instead.

Cannibal Cove held a special place in her tinker's heart. She'd lost track of how many great finds had washed onto the beach there. As the cove came into view, she descended to glide along the shoreline. Her spirit dropped a notch, as the beach looked quite clean this morning. She was about to give up & return home when a glint from something near the tree-line caught her eye.

Tink landed next to the object: A dark bottle, half-buried, upright in the sand. Not an unusual find, but this one had a cork in it. She tried to peer through the dark green glass. It looked like there might be something inside, so Tink fluttered up to the cork and gave it a mighty pull. It refused to budge. She gave a wry smile and kicked the side of the cork; it moved with a squeak. She hovered to the other side and kicked again; another squeak. Tink kicked alternate sides of the cork until it was finally removable by hand. Good thing, because her foot was getting sore.

Tink peered into the bottle mouth. There was something flat, rolled up inside. She couldn't quite reach it, so she found a twig & hooked it out. It was a piece of parchment about 6 inches square. When Tink rolled it flat on the beach, she gasped at what she saw.

"Wait 'til the girls see this!" she cried. Tink quickly rolled up the paper and zoomed for Pixie Hollow.

* * *

At Dulsie's tearoom, the Tinker Bell gang was in the middle of breakfast.

"I can't believe what a busy summer it's been." Rosetta commented. "And autumn is almost here."

"Mm." agreed Silvermist, "We haven't had a chance to do anything together."

"We should plan another day out at Pegleg Point." suggested Iridessa.

"Speaking of together," said Vidia, "Where's Little Miss Spare Parts?" In answer, Tinker Bell burst through the doors.

"Hey, guys! Look what I found on the beach!" Tink unfurled the paper over the table, as everyone snatched-up their plates and glasses. The parchment landed with a _plop_.

"A tablecloth?" asked Silvermist. Everyone set their plates and glasses on the paper.

"No, not a tablecloth. It's a map." While everyone studied the map, Tink scooped the pumpkin muffin from Rosetta's plate and took a big bite.

"Hey, that was the last one." Rosetta eyed the muffin in Tink's hand.

"Sowwy, I habn't had bweakfas'." Tink answered with a full mouth. She swallowed, and whispered to the group. "I found this in a bottle. I think it's a _pirate treasure map_!"

Everyone gasped. Fairies aren't big hoarders of treasure; the mining talents provide all the precious metals & gemstones they need, but fairies do love sparkly things.

"Look," Tink continued, pointing to the map, "There's the beach at Cannibal Cove where I found it." Her finger traced a dashed line on the map. "This trail leads to the Neverland Plains, on the western edge of the Neverwood."

"What does the X mean?" asked Silvermist.

"I think that's where the treasure is hidden." Tink grinned at them. "I'm going after that treasure. Who's in?"

The group all made agreeable noises, except Fawn, who stared at the map with an empty face.

"Fawn?" prompted Tink.

"Sorry, guys. I can't go. I have stuff to do." Fawn sounded discouraged.

"Well, can't you do it tomorrow?" asked Rosetta.

"No, it has to be today. You can tell me about the treasure later."

"We'll miss you, Fawn." Silvermist added.

Fawn gave a shy smile. "I'll catch up with you, if I finish early."

The gang quickly finished breakfast, and trotted outside with the map. They said farewell to Fawn, and took to the skies for the Neverland Plains. Fawn gave a sly grin, and followed them at a discrete distance.

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	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

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* * *

 **Treasure Hunt** \- Chapter 2 - The Mark is Roped

The Tinker Bell gang flew west over Pixie Hollow, then the Neverwood forest, toward the Neverland Plains.

"We're looking for a large clearing, partly ringed by trees, where the forest turns into plains." Tink told the others. "There should be 4 large rocks in a square."

"Or an X." suggested Vidia.

"Oh... yeah, I suppose it could be an X."

After some time in the air, they reached the edge of the Neverwood and found the clearing. They landed on one of the rocks to check the map.

"According to this, the treasure should be right in the center." Tink said. They all slid into the tall grass between the rocks and began searching.

* * *

Fawn knew exactly where they were going and had reached the clearing shortly before the gang, but she stayed hidden in the trees. Fawn raised a birch bark megaphone to her mouth, and started practising her bird calls.

* * *

"Hush!" cried Vidia, looking up. They all stood still. "Did you hear that?" Another bird call echoed over the clearing. "Hawk!" hissed Vidia. Everyone gasped.

After a few tense moments of waiting & watching, Tinker Bell suggested "I don't think it can see us in the tall grass. We can still keep looking."

Several minutes later, Iridessa called "Tink, I found something." Everyone worked their way to her through the grass.

"It's another bottle, just like the one at the cove." Tink cupped her face to the glass.

"Is the treasure inside?" asked Silvermist.

"I can't tell. Help me get this cork out."

With everyone pulling, the cork squeaked from the bottle. Tink looked inside, then reached in and pulled out a curled-up parchment paper. She unrolled it for everyone to see.

"Huh." Tink grunted, "It's another map."

"So, no treasure." Vidia frowned.

"I guess they wanted to make it hard to find. This one has an X, south of the Misty Mountains where Havendish Stream joins with another. It's near a small river island."

"Oh, I know where that is!" cried Silvermist, "It's called the Water X."

"Then I guess that's where we go." Tink nodded. She rolled the 2 maps together, and after some careful watching for hawks, they all flew for the Misty Mountains.

* * *

Fawn was already on her way to the Water X. When she arrived, she looked in on some river otter friends of hers.

* * *

The Tinker Bell gang followed Silvermist to the Water X, and hovered above while Sil explained its name. The 2 incoming streams formed the top part of the X, then the combined stream split to go around the island, forming the bottom part of the X.

The gang flew up & down the shorelines, but found no signs of pirate activities. When they checked the map, it became clear what they were missing.

"This X is drawn right in the middle of the Water X." Tinker Bell noted. They all looked down at the water.

"Could the treasure be in the river?" asked Rosetta. They hovered close to the water, which was clear, but the ripples made it impossible to see the bottom.

"Sil," asked Tink, "Could you make the water surface mirror-flat?"

"Oh, yeah." Silvermist gestured as if smoothing a bed-sheet, and the water surface calmed. They spent several minutes following Sil around and studying the river bottom.

"What's that?" Vidia pointed to an object jutting from the river bed.

"It looks like another bottle." stated Iridessa.

"So how do we get to it?" Rosetta asked. Everyone looked at Tinker Bell. The river bed was only 1 foot below the surface, but the water flow was strong enough to keep plants from growing there.

"Uhm..." Tink tugged at her bangs as she thought. "Sil, could you push the water down to the bottle?"

Silvermist pushed the water down like a bowl, but it kept moving and trying to drift downstream. "It's too strong." she said. "I usually work _with_ water, not against it."

"Try using a boat shape." Tink suggested. Silvermist had a much more control of the water with that. Tink quickly hovered into the invisible boat to examine the bottle, then zipped back out. "It looks like the bottle is full of air. If we can get it out of the river bed, it might float. I'll need some ropes."

They spent the next little while collecting vines and tying them into ropes. One end of the big rope was fastened to the river bank. When they were ready, Tinker Bell tied a smaller rope around her waist as she gave them a briefing.

"Sil will push the water down, while I fly in and tie this big rope to the bottle."

"Tink, isn't that dangerous?" Vidia asked.

"I'm relying on Sil to hold the water back, but if something goes wrong, you guys will have the other end of my rope & pull me out."

"Wouldn't it go faster if we helped? asked Rosetta.

"Can any of you tie a double constrictor knot?" Tink got blank looks from them. "Then I guess it's me. Let's go."

Over the river, Sil pushed the water down to the bottle and Tink dropped in next to it. Her friends nervously held the other end of Tink's safety line, as they watched her looping the heavier rope around the neck of the bottle. She was almost ready to tighten the knot, when a large furry face splashed through the side of Silvermist's water depression.

This startled everyone, and Sil almost lost control of her hole in the water. The face nudged Tinker Bell and gave friendly chittering noises.

"No time to play, I'm working here!" Tink told the otter.

"If Fawn was here, she could talk to the otter." Silvermist struggled to hold her water shape. Tinker Bell straightened out her knot and pulled it tight. As she rose out of the hole, the otter grabbed the bottle neck in its front paws & rocked it loose from the river bed.

"That's it, Sil!" Tink called, and Silvermist let the water return to its natural level.

The bottle bobbed to the surface, and began drifting downstream. As the rope around it tightened, the bottle swung toward the bank where the rope was anchored. The bottle eventually floated over and beached itself on the river bank. The gang had the cork out in seconds, and Tinker Bell pulled another map from the bottle.

"This treasure must be really something, if they went to this much trouble to hide it." Tink rolled out the map and followed the dashed line. "It looks like the next X is at a couple of fallen trees in the Neverwood."

"What are those wiggly lines rising from the logs?" Rosetta asked.

"I don't know. I guess we'll find out when we get there." Tink rolled up the map with the other 2, and they flew north for the Neverwood.

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	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

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* * *

 **Treasure Hunt** \- Chapter 3 - The Sure Thing

Fawn was already on her way to the Neverwood, with a grin of anticipation. She hid herself near the crossed logs to await the arrival of her friends.

* * *

The Tinker Bell gang made their way to the north region of the Neverwood, which was an old-growth forest. It took them a while to find the 2 fallen trees, one on top of the other, at right-angles.

"Ha!" cried Vidia, "X marks the spot!" They landed on the end of a log to check the map.

"The X is right where the trees cross." Tink told them. They fluttered toward the spot, then all stopped in mid-air, as if hitting a wall. A wall of stench.

"Whaag!" coughed Rosetta, "What is _that_?"

"Skunk." Tink frowned & wrinkled her nose.

"Of course." Rosetta fanned her face with her hands. "I just figured out what the wiggly lines on the map mean." Vidia began whipping up a wind.

"No, wait." Tink told her, "There's probably a skunk den there. We don't want to wake them up. Just do a light breeze." Vidia complied.

"How do we get down there?" asked Iridessa.

"I dragged you guys into this," Tink sighed, "I'll buzz in and have a look." She gulped several lung-fulls of air, then held her breath and zipped under the logs.

Tink was back moments later, gasping with a red face. "The bottle is buried up to the neck." she panted, "The cork won't move. It'll take all of us to get it out. And..." she eyed them with despair, "It's pretty bad down there. I won't blame you, if you want to give up."

"I'm still in." stated Vidia.

"Me too." piped Silvermist.

"I'm in." echoed Iridessa. Everyone turned to Rosetta, who was staring at the gloom under the logs.

"Ro?" prodded Tink.

"I'm thinkin'." she turned toward a sunny patch of forest nearby. "Wait here a minute." Rosetta flew off to the small clearing, but returned shortly holding a bouquet of small flowers with long, slender stems. She handed one to each of them.

"Put the flower on your face like this," Rosetta placed the flower over her nose & mouth, "And tie the stem around your head to hold it on." In moments, they each had a flower tied onto their face. "Now we're ready."

* * *

Nearby, Fawn was watching the gang, and had developed a case of the giggles. She tore a slab of moss from a tree trunk and mashed it over her lower face to muffle her laughter.

* * *

"I've gotta say, Ro, this flower is working pretty well." Tink commented, as they pried at the bottle's cork.

"But it's tickling my nose." added Silvermist.

"Don't sneeze, or you'll blow the petals off." Rosetta advised.

With a few minutes' work, they had the cork out and flew away with the map from inside the bottle. Tink spread the map out on the fallen tree trunk, and they removed the flower masks.

"Oh," said Iridessa, "I can still smell skunk."

"It's on our clothes." Rosetta sighed, "And our hair, and skin. We'll all need to clean up when we get back."

"The next X is at a tree in the Crocodile Creek swamp." Tink pointed at the map. "Maybe the flight there will drive some of the smell from us."

On the way to the creek, Tinker Bell thought about their last stop. She couldn't believe that pirates would plant a treasure clue right next to a skunk den. The few pirates she had actually seen tended to be poor examples of human cleanliness, but really! Yet the map was there. Who else but pirates would go to that much trouble?

* * *

A while later, the gang was cruising above the creek, looking for a lone tree on a small spit of land. Crocodile Creek is a cypress swamp that wanders from the foot of Never Falls, to Cannibal Cove. They actually flew all the way to the cove without spotting it, so after checking the map they flew back, concentrating on the west bank.

"There it is." cried Rosetta. "Goodness, that tree does not look healthy at all." The tree would have been a tall one, except that it appeared the top third was missing; the trunk ended abruptly at 4 branches.

The fairies spent minutes searching the small land spit around the tree, with no clues. They stopped again to re-examine the map.

"Well, the way this picture is drawn," Tinker Bell proposed, "It could either be in the water near the shore, or the top of the tre..."

"Rosetta!" called Vidia, "There's a mosquito on your arm!"

"Yeek!" Rosetta flailed the air frantically as the miniature monster hovered clear. It was almost the size of her hand. "Bad mosquito!" she shook her finger at the beast. "Ba-a-ad! You know better than to poke fairies." A dozen more were circling them, so Vidia started up a strong breeze to carry them away.

* * *

Nearby, Fawn chuckled to herself as she watched. She raised the birch-bark megaphone to her mouth again, and tried a new bird call.

* * *

"What was that?" cried a distressed Iridessa.

"Eagle?" answered Vidia "Sounds kind of sick."

"Do eagles eat fairies?" Silvermist asked.

"I don't know. They're hunters, but big, and not as fast as hawks."

"If Fawn was here, she'd know what to do." sighed Silvermist, "We'll keep an eye open, then."

"Sil, could you help us check the water again?" Tink continued. Everyone followed Silvermist to the water, while Rosetta turned her attention to the tree.

"Whatever could have happened to this tree?" she asked herself as she spiraled up the trunk. " _Lightning_? _Insect infestation_?" she thought. When Rosetta reached the top, she hovered, looking down at the decayed wood and her friends at water level below. " _Huh_. _Those 4 branches look like an X_." It took a moment for her brain to click, then "Hey, guys? I think I found it!"

The bottle was tucked into a cavity at the top of the tree trunk. When the cork was pulled, Tink spread out the map on a tree branch.

"Okay," Tink examined the map, "This X is at a cave in the eastern Misty Mountains. At the end of the cave, it says 'High Noon'... whatever that means."

"What are those squiggly lines near the cave entrance?" asked Iridessa.

"I can't tell. I guess we find out when we get there." Tinker Bell glanced back at the tree as they flew away. This particular tree was a 50-foot post with some branches on top. Pirates could climb ropes, but would they climb that tree? Just to leave a treasure clue? Something didn't seem right about that.

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	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

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* * *

 **Treasure Hunt** \- Chapter 4 - The Mark Chills

Once again, Fawn had beaten the gang to the next location. She fluttered into the cave to meet with animal friends, and wait for fairy friends.

* * *

After touring the eastern Misty Mountains in search of the cave, the Tinker Bell gang finally found it and cautiously glided in. The daylight & forest noises faded as they fluttered deeper inside, and the air became cooler.

"It sure is dark in here." Iridessa commented nervously. She turned up her fairy glow a bit.

They continued fluttering into the dark, lit only by their glows. Suddenly the cave silence was filled with strings of high-pitched chirps. They quickly looked around for the source, and spotted a large colony of bats hanging from the ceiling.

"Bats..." squeaked Iridessa, and she began breathing rapidly.

"It's too bad Fawn isn't here," Silvermist fretted, "This is just her cauldron of bats."

"Everybody land," whispered Tink, "And turn off your glows." Tink landed and picked up a walking stick from the cave floor. Each glow went out as the others landed, except Iridessa.

"Dess, turn off your glow. We don't want to disturb the bats." whispered Tink. The bats continued to chirp at them.

"I-I... I can't."

"Dess, what's wrong?"

"I..." she gulped, "I'm afraid of the dark."

Vidia gasped. "A light-talent fairy who's afraid of the dark?"

"Well, that's ironic." commented Rosetta.

"But we've seen you out at night, plenty of times." Silvermist stated, for encouragement.

"That's different." Iridessa whimpered. "There's always the moon, and the stars, and the Pixie Dust Tree... but this is _really_ dark."

"It'll be alright, Dessa," Tink consoled her. "...just until we get past these bats. Everyone join hands." When they were all linked up, Tink coaxed Iridessa, "Now close your eyes - we're right here with you - and turn off your glow." The cave went completely dark.

Waving her walking stick, Tinker Bell led the group followed by Silvermist, Iridessa, Rosetta and Vidia. The bats above them settled down.

"What am I walking in?" whispered Rosetta, "It feels like mud."

"You don't want to know." answered Tink.

"And it stinks!"

"Just hold your breath." added Vidia.

After a short while of stumbling in the dark, something occurred to Tinker Bell. "Dess, you can see infra-red can't you?"

"Yeah."

"Well, what can you see around us?" After a pause, came the answer.

"Not much." Iridessa whispered. "I can see your body heats, I can see the bats behind us, but there are no IR light sources to..." she gasped, "There's warm air up ahead!"

"I think it might be safe to turn our glows on." Tink suggested. The cave lit with pale gold light again, and they fluttered after the scent of warm, moist air.

Rosetta remarked kindly to Iridessa, "For someone who normally has their life so together, you sure have a lot of phobias."

Light in the cave increased, until they entered a dead-end chamber lit by an X-shaped crack in the rock, high on the south wall.

"Aww, why couldn't we have come in _that_ way?" cried Iridessa in frustration. She stared up at daylight through the cracks.

"Look, sunlight from the crack makes an X on the cave floor!" Vidia noticed.

They all flew over to the sunlight X and dug through the litter on the cave floor, making themselves dirty. With no results, they expanded their search around the chamber. But something didn't seem right for Iridessa, who stopped to think. Tinker Bell found a small, dusty, wooden chest against the wall, when Dessa figured out what was wrong.

"Guys, what time is it?" Iridessa asked.

"About mid-afternoon, why?" responded Tink.

"Well, if it was 'high noon', the sunlight X would be over here." she glided several yards to the right. They all converged on the spot and quickly found another bottle. When the cork was removed, Tink spread out another map for them.

"This X is at crossed paths in the Tiki Forest." Tink stated. "But before we go anywhere, I'd like to see what's in that chest against the wall." They all glided over to it and tried to lift the lid.

"It's locked." declared Vidia.

Tinker Bell reached into the keyhole and felt around. "If it's anything like other human locks I've seen, the tab on the key turns against a slot in a bar, which should release the catch." She gave a push. "It hasn't been moved in a while." Tink used her hands to collect some pixie dust from her wings, then blew the dust into the keyhole. When she tried the lock a second time, it moved with a small crunch and the chest lid popped up. She raised the lid and peered inside.

"Don't tell me." Vidia folded her arms, "It's another map."

"Uh, yeah." Tink sighed with mild disappointment. This one was tied with twine, and looked older than the others they had collected. When Tink rolled it out, they saw it was more crudely drawn, and signed 'Captain H. Barbossa'.

"This one shows an X at the caves in Mermaid Lagoon." Iridessa noted. "Which one do we follow?"

"Uh... let's go outside where we can get a better look at these maps." decided Tink. The gang followed Tinker Bell out through the large cracks in the south wall. Tink continued up & away until they were 100 feet from the rock wall, where they stopped & hovered.

"I wanted to make sure no one is listening." Tink winked at them. "Everyone gather 'round like we're studying the map." She unrolled a map, while the others frowned and flashed looks between themselves. "Guys, there's something twitchy going on here." Tink told them. "What pirate would go to the trouble of hiding all these maps? They'd be tromping around Neverland for days!"

"So, who _did_ hide all those maps, then?" Rosetta frowned.

"Who's not here?" Tink smirked, "Who'd never miss out on adventures with us?"

"Fawn?" suggested Silvermist, with surprise.

"That little stinkbug." muttered Vidia.

"She sent us on a wild butterfly chase." frowned Iridessa.

"Take it easy." Tink cautioned, "She might be watching."

"So..." Rosetta sizzled with restraint, "What do we do with Fawn?"

Tink gave them a wicked smile. "I have a plan."

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

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* * *

 **Treasure Hunt** \- Chapter 5 - Dealer Pays

Fawn swept along a path in the Tiki Forest, on the western shore of Cannibal Cove. She smiled as she flew over the crossing path, where the next map was hidden. She continued into the forest to a nearby hill, where a family of chimpanzees lived.

Fawn spend a few minutes playing with the young chimps, then asked if the family would like to meet her fairy friends. The group swung and climbed through the forest to a hiding spot near the crossed paths. Fawn instructed the chimpanzees to "go wild" when Tinker Bell & the gang arrived.

Twenty minutes passed, with no sign of the fairies. The chimpanzees became restless and wandered back to their hill. Fawn wondered what happened to the gang. Maybe this location was too hard for them to find. She waited 15 minutes more, then flew back to the bat cave. No sign of them there, either. Maybe they got hungry and went back to Pixie Hollow for snacks.

Fawn flew off for Pixie Hollow. Her first stop was Dulsie's tearoom. No one had seen the gang there, so Fawn grabbed a honeycomb cake to munch, and wandered outside. While she stood pondering the whereabouts of her friends, she heard the clatter of a 6-mouse wagon approaching.

Around a turn came Tinker Bell, on the wagon, with the other friends flying close escort. Tink pulled the wagon to a halt in front of the tearoom, as a cloud of dust blew clear.

"Fawn!" cried Rosetta, "Did you miss out!" The others landed next to the wagon. They were covered in smudges & litter, and carried a "wild" odor.

"I can tell by your dirt, you guys must have had _some adventure_!" Fawn grinned at them.

"Wait 'til you see what _we_ found!" Tink gestured to a small wooden chest on the back of the large wagon. They pulled open the lid and hovered clear for Fawn to see. The chest was heaped with gold coins, bracelets, rings,  & loose gemstones.

Fawn gasped. "You guys actually found a pirate treasure?" Her eyes were huge, and her mouth hung open in astonishment. "But... but... How? ...Where?"

"We just followed the maps." Vidia smiled, and Tink raised the bundle of maps.

"It was easy." declared Iridessa.

"You should have come along, Fawn." smiled Silvermist.

"Let's all have supper and celebrate." announced Rosetta. They fluttered into the tearoom.

* * *

Dinner progressed with lots of excited chatter. Although Fawn knew most of what happened during their day, their stories were only about the most superficially positive events. Fawn tried unsuccessfully to tease from them exactly where they found the treasure, but they didn't seem to catch her intention. She finally had to conclude that it had been pure, dumb luck that they stumbled over a treasure chest.

"I still can't believe you actually found a pirate treasure." Fawn admitted with exasperation. "That just totally blows me for a loop."

"Well then," Tinker Bell looked around at the group, "Everyone satisfied?"

"Yeah, I think so." smiled Rosetta.

"That'll do." smirked Vidia, while the others nodded. Fawn's animal senses gave her the fleeting impression she was being left out of some private joke. The tone at the table then seemed to change.

"Alright Fawn," Tink eyed her, "The game's over. It's time to 'fess up." Tink pulled the maps onto the table. "We know you got these parchments from the paper-making talents a month ago." Tink unrolled the bundle, showing the first map.

"And this art work is too good for a pirate." Rosetta pointed out.

"And everywhere we went, animals were interfering." Iridessa stated. Their smudged faces all stared at Fawn.

Fawn blushed furiously. "Okay, okay, it was me." She grinned sheepishly at them, trying to charm away the stern glares from her friends. "You guys have been working so hard all summer, I thought you could use a break." She squirmed with embarrassment. "So... I... set up this little adventure for you." Fawn gave a nervous chuckle. "You _did_ look really silly with flowers tied to your faces."

The group scowled at her for a moment longer, then all burst out laughing.

"You should have seen your face when you saw the chest!" Tink laughed.

"It was priceless!" agreed Rosetta.

"You guys missed the last 2 bottles." Fawn relaxed and smiled at them, "The last map takes you right back to the first bottle on the beach."

"A complete circle?" asked Silvermist.

"What a waste of time that would have been!" Iridessa huffed, in mock outrage.

"Yeah, but didn't you have fun?" Fawn glanced around at them. "I never thought in a hundred years you would actually find a pirate treasure!"

"Well, appearances can be deceiving." Vidia smiled cooly.

"After the bat cave, Rosetta and I flew for home," Tink explained, "While Vidia, Dess, and Sil floated the empty chest out of the cave cracks, and towards Pixie Hollow."

"I talked to the paper-making talents," confided Rosetta, "While Tink fetched the biggest wagon in the tinker stable. Then I dropped into the dress-making talents to borrow a bolt of gold-colored silk fabric."

"We raided Aidan's crown-repair shop," added Tink, "Twire's scrap metal shop, and the jewelry-talent shop for all their gold & gems, then rode for the Pixie Hollow border."

"When they reached the border," Iridessa continued, "We placed the empty chest on the wagon, and filled it full of sticks from the Neverwood."

"Then we draped the gold silk on the wood, and sprinkled the gold & gems on top." finished Silvermist.

Fawn's eyes had grown big as she listened. "You mean, there _is_ no pirate treasure?"

"That's right, pumpkin." grinned Rosetta.

"Oh... you guys." Fawn frowned at them, but smiled too. "You got me." They all chuckled.

"So," Tinker Bell flipped over the map pages, "We figured out what the wiggly lines are over the crossed logs, but what are these squiggly lines near the bat cave?"

"They're supposed to be bats." Fawn shrugged, "Sorry, I can't get the hang of drawing bats."

"And what about _this_ map?" Tink showed the crudely drawn one with the name. "What were we supposed to do with this?"

Fawn studied the map and frowned. "That's not one of mine."

"Oh, come on, Fawn..." Vidia chuckled.

"No, Fairy's Honor! That's not my drawing style. I've never seen this before." The group was silent for a moment as they passed glances between each other.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" asked Silvermist.

"Yeah... Fawn? You're with me tomorrow." Tink grinned at them. "We're going after that treasure. Who's in?"

* * *

.


End file.
